Too busy!
A UK television commercial for a well-known credit card caught my attention a few months
back. The opening sequence shows a London music shop, with a woman looking at a window
display of fretted instruments described as ‘ideal for beginners’. The voice-over
sympathises: “Everybody has something they’d love to do …. one day. But there’s
always reasons to put it off.” “Too busy!” says the woman. But later in
the sequence we see that she takes the leap and purchases a ukulele. By the end of the
commercial she is strumming delightedly with a fellow musician. The purchase was of
course made possible by the afore-mentioned credit card, and during the 60 seconds of the
advertisement the card has also made a reality of other people’s dreams in a range of
sports and pastimes. You can see the ad at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EfJCnv5hB9M tho
ugh I must point out (in correct BBC style) that other credit cards are also available.
While the advertisement focuses on the monetary cost of playing music, the woman’s
problem of “Too busy!” seems to me to be a major issue. The credit card
commercial conveniently glosses over the business of finding time to practice – the
implication is presumably that once you have purchased an instrument you will get really
enthused and this will automatically ensure that you will somehow find the time to play.
Unfortunately I’ve met quite a number of beginners over the years who start off with
great optimism only to give up playing as their enthusiasm dwindles. ‘Not enough time to
practice’ is a common problem. I think there is a view that music should somehow come
‘naturally’ and that your fingers will ‘automatically’ produce a beautiful flow of notes
from your guitar/banjo/mandolin. For the majority of beginners this simply doesn’t
happen. There has to be a degree of determination to put in hours of woodshedding per
week, without much encouragement from your nearest and dearest, to develop to a level of
proficiency.
Why take all this time and trouble? I think that the primary motivation for the struggle
is that you are achieving a new level of experience in music. It is one thing to listen
to recordings and live performances; it is a quantum leap to be able to make music
yourself. I am sometimes reminded of the determination of Hans Christian Andersen’s
Little Mermaid to walk in spite of the pain she feels. The classic self-tutor book for
guitar players in UK is “Play In A Day” by Bert Weedon, published as long ago
as 1957 and still in print. This book was used by the likes of Eric Clapton, Mike
Oldfield, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, John Lennon, Sting, Brian May and Pete
Townshend when they were tyro musicians. Bert Weedon writes: “Let me say right away
that every player – the best in the world included – found it hard and something of an
effort to get his fingers to go onto the right places at the right time in the beginning,
but this will come, believe me. Nature did not fashion our fingers for guitar playing
specifically, but Nature has given us a mind to think with, will power, patience and
determination. With all these things at your command guitar playing will come quite
easily.”
For those who are just starting to learn to play I wish you every success and enjoyment –
plus the determination and ingenuity to find time for the regular practice which will
enable you to become a competent musician. Keep picking’
John Baldry
April 2018
